O Aditya, O friend, O Varuna, O Indra! I have committed many crimes against you; Forgive them and grant me the boon of that Abhaya-Jyoti so that I do not suffer from the affliction of ignorance.
-Rigveda, 2.27.14.
The first appearance of the Rigvedic civilization in India appears in the Sapta-Sindhu region and near the Saraswati river. In Rigveda, Sapta-Sindhav region and Saraswati river have been sung in many mantras. Although the Saraswati river no longer exists and is assumed to be invisible at the confluence of Ganga-Yamuna at Prayag, but in those days it used to flow between Satjal and Kurukshetra.
Political System of Rigvedic Aryans
Although the Rigveda is a religious text, information about the political system of that period is found in many of its hymns.
Conflict with Dasyus or Aryan-Easts
Although Indra mentioned in the Rigveda is the king of the gods, yet Indra defeated the enemies of the Aryans many times. In the Rigveda, Indra has been called Purandar, which means the destroyer of forts, but it is not possible to identify these forts of the pre-Aryans. Very little information is also available about the weapons and weapons of the enemies of the Aryans.
Some of these may have been settlements of the people of the Harappan culture but there is no doubt about the success of the Aryans. The main reason for this success was the chariots in which the horses were plowed. Along with the Aryans, horses arrived in West Asia and India. Aryan soldiers probably wore armor (varma) and their weapons were superior.
Information is received from Rigveda that 'Divodas' Ne, who was the Aryan king of the Bharata clan, 'Shambar' had defeated. Shambar was a bandit king who built ninety, ninety-nine or a hundred forts in the sky. From the mention of the fortification in the sky, it is inferred that Shambar was a mountainous non-Aryan king who had built a large number of forts on the mountains.
The bandits of the Rigveda were probably the original inhabitants of this mountainous country, and the warrior who defeated them was an Aryan-chief. Here the word Das is associated with the name of Divodas, from which it is inferred that this Aryan-chief was sympathetic to the Dasas, but was a staunch enemy of the Dasyus. Dasyuhanta in Rigveda The word has been mentioned time and again that the bandits were probably gender-worshippers and did not keep cows, buffaloes for milk, curd, ghee etc.
Battle of Pancha-Janas
The ancient Aryans had no organized state. The Aryans were divided into small kingdoms (janas) in which there was mutual enmity. As a result, the Aryans not only had to fight with the non-Aryans, but they also fought among themselves. Thus the Aryans were caught in a double struggle. Due to the conflict within the Aryans, there was a long turmoil in his life.
The five major tribes or Panchjans fought among themselves and for this they also took the help of non-Aryan people. 'Bharat' and 'Tritsu' Aryans were people and 'Vasishtha' A sage named Sage was on his side. The name Bharata is mentioned for the first time in the Rigveda. On the basis of this name our country was named Bharatvarsha.
Dasharagya or War of the Ten Kings
According to the Rigvedic mention, there was a Jana (state) named Bharat on the banks of the Saraswati river, which was ruled by a king named Sudas. Vishwamitra was the priest of King Sudas. Due to the rift between the king and the priest, King Sudas made Vasistha his priest in place of Vishwamitra. This made Vishwamitra very unhappy. He organized ten kings and waged a war against King Sudas.
This group of ten kings had five Arya-kings and five non-Arya-kings. The war between Bharata and ten kings was called 'Dasharagya war' it is said. This battle took place on the banks of Parushni (Ravi) river. In this, King Sudas of Bharat clan was victorious and the dominion of the Bharatas was established. Among the tribes that were defeated, the clan of Purus was the most important.
Rise of Kurus
Later on 'Bharat' and 'purus' matched and resulted in 'Kuru' A new ruler of Kabila came into existence. Kuru later 'Panchala' and established their rule in the northern Ganges basin. They played an important role in this area during the post-Vedic period. Other wars also took place among the Aryans.
Political Institutions of Rigveda Period
(1.) Gopa or Rajnya: The foundation of Rigvedic-era political system Kutumb which was ancestral. The family has been called by modern historians as Kabila. The head of the family was the father or some other old man who controlled the other members of the family. A village was formed by merging several families. Village head 'Gramani' It was called 'Vis' Was made Chief of Vis 'Vispati' It was called 'Jana' Was made The Protector of the People 'Gop' or 'State' It was called.
(2.) Tradition of Succession: The political organization of the Rigvedic period was monarchical. The Rigveda mentions many kingdoms. The office of the state was hereditary and was derived from the rule of succession. That is, after the kingdom, his eldest son used to sit on the throne. Although the office of the state was hereditary, information is also available about the elections conducted by the committee or the assembly.
The state had the highest position in the state. He used to wear beautiful clothes and resided in a grand royal palace in which big officials, pundits, singers and servants of the state were present. Since there was a lack of means of transportation in those days, the states used to be very small.
(3.) Duties of the State: Rajanya is said to be the guardian of the clan (Gopta Janasya). He protected the cow, led the war and worshiped the gods on behalf of the clan. Protecting the subjects, fighting with the enemies, establishing peace in the state and performing sacrifices and rituals at the time of peace were the main duties of the state.
The state used to take care of not only the fulfillment of the material needs of its subjects but also the spiritual progress. The state used to keep secrets to look after the conduct of its subjects, who used to inform the state about the conduct of the subjects. Rajya used to punish the conduct-corrupt subjects.
(4.) Key officials of the state: There were many officials to assist the state, in which Purohit, Senani and Gramani etc. were prominent.
Priest: The position of the priest was the highest among all the office bearers. His position was usually hereditary, but sometimes he was elected from another family. The priest had to perform many duties. He was the religious leader and counselor of the state.
Therefore, he had a great influence in the state. He used to accompany the prince in the battle field and tried to win the kingdom through his prayers and mantras. In the Rigvedic period, there were two prominent priests named Vasistha and Vishwamitra. They guided the kings and in return received bountiful dakshinas in the form of cows and maidservants.
Fighter: The second chief officer of the state was the fighter. He knew how to use spear, axe, saber etc. He operated the army. He was probably appointed by the state itself. In the wars in which the presence of the state was not considered necessary, the fighter was the head of the army, who operated the army by being present in the battlefield.
Gramani: Gramani was the third chief officer. He was responsible for the management of the village. Initially the Gramani was the leader of a small group of warriors, but when the village was settled permanently, the Gramani became the head of the village and later his position became equivalent to that of Vrajapati.
Kulp: The head of the family or clan was called Kulap.
Vajrapati: The official of the transit-bhoomi is called Vrajapati. He used to lead the Kulpas and Villagers in the war.
(5.) Battlefield: The two main reasons for the success of the Rigvedic Aryans in India were horse-drawn chariots and weapons made of iron. All able-bodied men had to participate in the war. Ordinary people used to fight on foot, but Rajnyas and Kshatriyas used to fight on chariots. Armor etc. was used for self-defense in war.
The main weapon of attack was the bow and arrow, but spears, axes and swords were also used as needed. Flag, ensign, dundubhi etc. were also used. Wars often took place on the banks of rivers.
(6.) Committee and Assembly: Although the rajanya was the head of the state, it was not autocratic and autocratic. There were some institutions to advise him. In the Rigveda, there are mentions of many institutions like Sabha, Samiti, Vidatha and Gana. In these councils, the interests of the people, military campaigns and religious rituals were discussed. In the Rigvedic period, women also participated in the sabha and vidatha.
The councils of most importance from the point of view of monarchy were probably the Sabha and the Samiti. In the committee, all the subjects of the people were members, but in the assembly only the senior citizens of the upper-class got membership. Both these councils were of such importance that the state also tried to get their cooperation.
(7.) Justice System: The state used to decide disputes and disputes with the help of his assistants. In judicial work, he used to get great help from the priest. The crimes which are mentioned in the Rigveda are theft, dacoity, burglary etc. There used to be a lot of theft of animals. Criminals were punished according to the person who was harmed. Water and fire-test was also promoted in this era.
(8.) Intelligence System: Thefts also took place during that period, especially of cows. Detectives were kept to keep an eye on criminal activities. We do not get any information about any officer collecting tax. These taxes were probably given voluntarily, as a gift to the kings. This offering was called Bali.
(9.) Other office bearers: The rajanya did not raise any regular army, but the army which was collected on the occasion of war consisted of various military groups called Vrat, Gana, Grama and Shardha. Overall, it was a family or tribal system of rule in which military spirit was predominant. Civil system or territorial system did not exist. People kept on spreading, changing their places.